might be able to give them some relief. If you have questions, please email us of call us. We have some informational packets on allergies hat we would be happy to provide to you.

It's that time of year again. It seems like everyone is sneezing, congested, and having itchy, irritated eyes. Yes, it's allergy season. But did you know that pets can have allergies, too?

An allergy develops when a pet's immune system reacts to a specific substance, called an allergen (for example, food protein, pollen, of flea saliva). The body's immune system will produce antibodies to fight off the foreign antigen. The confrontation causes a chemical reaction in the body called an allergic reaction that makes many people and pets miserable.

The canine and feline olfactory sensors (the nose) are extremely important to survival, so that if they develop allergies like humans (congested, runny nose and eyes, sneezing) it could hinder their ability to survive. So Mother nature caused allergies to develop in the skin or gastrointestinal tract. Most pets with allergies will show some of the following signs: itching & scratching especially on the hind end or the paws, hair loss, red and

irritated skin, hot spots, and vomiting and/or diarrhea. They can also develop secondary skin infections from the constant itching.

There are 3 common types of allergies: flea, inhalant and food.

When you pet is allergic to something that is inhaled, it is called an inhalant allergy. Some examples of inhalant allergies are: mold spores, pollen (grass, weeds, trees), aerosols, mildew and house dust mites. These are the most common forms of allergies. Usually, if your pet has seasonal allergies, then it might be caused by inhalant allergens (excluding the house dust mite). The very good news about inhalant allergies is that we can test your pet and mix up a serum specific for your pet to help them build up immunity against the allergens.

Pets can also develop an allergy to saliva of fleas. Pets are not allergic to fleas, but their saliva and it only takes a couple of fleas to cause severe itching and discomfort. If your pet has flea allergies, it is very important to

stay up-to-date on flea control. We recommend Advantage™.

Pets are not born with food allergies; they develop them over their lifetime. If your pet has food allergies, they are allergic to a specific protein in the food, such as chicken, corn, turkey, and/or pork (list is not exclusive). There is not a good test for food allergies. Hills Pet Nutrition™ has developed a hypo- allergenic food for dogs and cats with food allergies. We have pet owners feed a special diet to their pet for 6 weeks. If your pet responds to the special food, then we know that your pet is allergic to something in their own food. If they don't respond then they can possibly have inhalant allergy or some other form of allergy. It is very important that pets on special food eat only that food and no other treats or scraps. If you feed something else you will never know if the special food is working and if your pet is allergic to a certain protein in the food.

If you suspect your pet might have allergies, please call us. We just

We care about your pet's health. So to give everyone an incentive for their pets to lose weight, join the "Pet Weight Loss Club" and you could win a $25.00 gift certificate to Bistro Pizza or a bag of Hill's Prescription Diet dog or cat food.

Bring your pet into our clinic and weigh him or her in. We will start a file on your pet. At the end of the month we will weigh your pet again at our clinic.

Whichever pet has the biggest percentage of weight loss each month will win. If the winner opts for the pet food, he or she can choose between a 10 pound bag of feline, or a 20 pound bag of canine W/D   or   R/D   Hill's Prescription Diet food. There will be a separate contest for dogs and cats, and a different winner will be chosen each month! So don't delay, bring your pet by today to weigh.